Vets Pay Tribute To Comrades

PEMBROKE PINES -- Ron Duplichan squinted and fought back tears when he found the names of two friends printed on a monument to those who died in the Vietnam War.

Printed in tiny white letters, the names brought back memories of April 29, 1975, the day his friends were killed as they and Duplichan helped guard the U.S. Embassy in Saigon, South Vietnam.

The Vietnam War was over, and hundreds of residents and soldiers were being evacuated from the country.

But his friends, killed by rocket mortar, never made it home.

``They saved my life plenty of times,`` said Duplichan, a resident of Hollywood, who was an 18-year-old Marine at the time of the attack. ``I feel guilty they were killed and not me. It`s a hard thing to understand.``

Duplichan was one of thousands attending Sunday`s annual fund-raiser held by the Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 23.

The South Florida veterans were hoping to raise about $35,000 for their multipurpose center in Fort Lauderdale. The center provides counseling and support services for veterans of all wars.

The celebration at C.B. Smith Park, one of several on Veterans Day in Broward County, featured classic cars, food, amusement rides and an Elvis Presley look-alike who crooned to picnickers. One of the highlights was a miniature version of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, D.C.; the monument is maintained by the local Vietnam Veterans of America members.

Despite a festive atmosphere, the day was not entirely happy for Duplichan and others who had fought in Vietnam.

``It`s a touching day,`` said Bud Carlson, a Sunrise resident who worked as an engineer in Vietnam during the war. ``We`re here to have a good time, but our minds are still on the days of Vietnam. I lost friends from my hometown. It was the worse time in my life.``

And the fund-raiser, held for a third year in a row, was more patriotic this year because of the conflict in the Mideast.

Elizabeth Miller, who had come to the event with some Vietnam veterans who have a classic-car club, kept thinking about her son David, a 24-year-old Marine stationed in North Carolina. By Christmas, David Miller`s unit will join the forces in the Mideast.

``I`d like to be patriotic and say he is doing what is expected of him, but in my heart I want him home with his wife and home for Christmas,`` said Miller, a Cooper City resident.

Yellow ribbons marked a booth set up by Operation Homefront, a group that sends supplies and care packages to the troops. Mothers and relatives of soldiers were selling T-shirts.

``You really feel a resurgence of Americanism here this year,`` said Lisa Strachan of Oakland Park. Her 20-year-old son William, a paratrooper in the Army, has been in Saudi Arabia since August.

``It`s a show of support for all the young people in Saudi Arabia,`` she said.

VETERANS DAY

Holiday hours today:

-- BANKS: All banks will be closed.

-- BARC: The Broward Addiction Recovery Center will be open and accepting emergency evaluations, but outpatient and outreach services will be closed. Primary health-care clinics will be closed.

-- BUSES: Broward County Transit buses will operate under regular, daily schedules. Customer service representatives will also be available during normal working hours at 357-8400.

-- CITY HALLS: Dania City Hall is open. All other city halls will be closed.

-- COUNTY GOVERNMENT: Broward County Governmental Center and County Courthouse will be closed.